As Noted on the Blogs

"The law firm of Riley, Bennett & Egloff LLP, took out an ad in the latest issue of the Indianapolis Business Journal to welcome its newest attorney -- Mark Massa, the Republican candidate for Marion County prosecutor, reports The Indianapolis Times.

This is so wrong on many levels that this Indianapolis Observer doesn't know where to begin...so how about this question: "Will the Riley, Bennett ad show up on Massa's pre-primary campaign finance report as an in-kind contribution?"

Ballard Set for Life?

Comment of the day from the blogosphere:

"[Indianapolis Mayor Greg] Ballard has been told that if he plays his cards right, he'll be set in Indy for the rest of his life."

This Indianapolis Observer is horrified.

F1 Considers Return to Indy for US Grand Prix

According to the United Kingdom's Guardian newspaper, "Indianapolis is still a logical venue for a US Formula One grand prix and a return is on the cards, according to the sport's commercial rights holder Bernie Ecclestone.

"'It is [a possibility]', Ecclestone said. 'It's only the fact that it's all the wrong crowd and the wrong people ... nothing worked there really, we'd have to have a big change round. But we'd like to get back there.'

"Asked whether the United States could be back on the calendar as early as next year, he replied: 'We can have a look'."

Depressing Thoughts on a Gray Sunday

According to blogger Gary Welsh: "we have leadership [in Indy's Republican party] dripping with ethical issues and a growing appetite to tax the little guy to death while passing out big handouts to businesses that never produce the jobs they promise to produce when they are awarded our public tax dollars. When our Mayor recently used a clawback for a company that failed to meet its goals, he passed the money out to the agency that promotes downtown conventions and the economic development council that funds his international travels instead of returning it to the taxing districts that had been deprived of those revenues in the first place."

(This Indianapolis Observer notes that Ballard's in Brazil this month, and heading to India in April.)

St. Paddy's Day

Next week is the day when everyone's Irish -- St. Patrick's Day, of course.

The celebration in Indianapolis begins with the annual "greening" of the Downtown Canal by Mayor Greg Ballard at 6:45 a.m. 17 March. Then, the 30th Annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade steps off at 11 a.m. along Indy's traditional downtown parade route. This year's "Irish Citizen of the Year" is the Rev. Glenn L. O'Connor.

Other St. Patrick's Day events in downtown Indy include the 18th annual St. Patrick's Day party from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. at the Battery Park Saloon; a "Shamrock & Roll Tent Party" by Claddagh Irish Bar from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m.; corned beef & cabbage, Guinness and green beer from 8 a.m. to close at Elbow Room Pub; "Howl at the Moon St. Paddy's Day Bash" at What's Happening from 5 p.m. to close; Celtic fiddling by Emily Ann Thompson on the mezzanine of the Indianapolis City Market from 11:15 a.m. to 1:15 p.m., The Rathskellar Restaurant's 13th Annual Indianapolis Downtown Irish Fest is 11 a.m.-close...and there's no doubt more going on throughout Indy!

"A Feast for Your Eyes"

Peter Cook, a deaf performing artist, presents "A Feast for Your Eyes" at 7:30 p.m. Saturday (13 March) in the theater at the Indiana History Center, 450 West Ohio Street, Indianapolis. Tickets are $18 at the door. The performance is part of "Storytellers Theater" presented by Storytelling Arts of Indiana and the Indiana Historical Society.

Cook's presentations are a "potpourri of American Sign Language, pantomime, storytelling, acting and movement". A voice interpreter will speak his signs for hearing audiences.

He also will perform "The Wacky Faces of Peter Cook" especially for audiences of children at 2 p.m. Saturday (13 March) at the IHS. Tickets are $5 for children and $10 for adults.

Water Utility in Flux

According to the Indy.gov website, Mayor Greg Ballard and Citizens Energy Group CEO Carey Lykins will hold a joint news conference at 9 a.m. tomorrow (10 March)in the Mayor’s Conference Room on the 25th floor of the City-County Building in downtown Indianapolis.

Then, at 11 a.m., Michael Huber (director of Enterprise Development), David Sherman (director of the Department of Public Works) and Matthew Klein (executive director of the Department of Waterworks) -- but not the mayor -- will tell the public what they've decided (without public input, of course) about the City of Indianapolis' water and wastewater utilities. This event will be in the Riley Room of the Central branch of the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library, 40 East St. Clair Street, Indianapolis.

Way to go, guys. This Indianapolis Observer loves how "transparent" the Ballard administration is when dealing with city matters -- not!

UPDATE (11 March 2010):
Indy's Painfully Objective Political Analysis blog has great commentary on this shameful episode in city government: Ballard "says we need to get our utilities out of the hands of 'politicians' so no office holder can be blamed at election time for implementing necessary rate hikes." Oh, lordy. Help our mayor keep from justifying "necessary" actions! (Has anybody told him a mayor is supposed to, ummmm, lead?)